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Industry rebound anticipated this year market outlook By Judie Steeves


Consumer demand helps give cause for optimism that this year will see big improvement in prices and crop size.


he promotion of berries for their health properties continues to draw consumers into purchase of more fresh, frozen and processed berries, which translates into a pretty positive outlook for the industry overall in the coming year.


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Of course, Mother Nature always has the final say in any talk about agriculture, whether it’s a forecast or a look back, so all predictions are up to her in the end. However, market situations carry some weight as well.


Looking back over the previous year is something B.C. cranberry growers would just as soon not dwell on, because it was one of the lowest crops in recent memory. Jack Wessel, manager of the Cranberry Marketing Commission, says the total crop was about 63 million pounds, down from the average of 80 million pounds in recent years.


Although prices for the Ocean Spray Co-op held up, independent growers found prices lower, noted Wessel.


In 2010, there was a big carryover of crop from the previous year, and, despite last year’s short crop in B.C., it’s expected there will be some carryover again this year, he said.


However, 90 percent of the crop went to Ocean Spray where sales are good.


Neither raspberries nor blueberries suffered from such a sharp decline last year in B.C., although raspberries were down about 15 per cent and blueberries were down slightly, reports Jesse Brar, who is in sales and marketing with Pacific Coast Fruit Products. Despite the slight drop in product, raspberry prices remained


6 British Columbia Berry Grower • Spring 2011


low, so it was a difficult year for growers.


“They took hits on both product and price,”


commented Brar. He believes the price will be better this year, and is optimistic it will be a better year for growers. Chile is the wild card, he says, although with good demand for blueberries and blackberries, they could have some problems finding


adequate labour this year, he noted. Also, the La Nina weather effect means it will be warmer in Chile and there could be some drought issues.


Prime European growing regions were short last year, so he doesn’t feel there’s a lot of product in Europe, meaning some of the Chilean crop could end up there. There are some concerns about last November’s freeze here while berry plants were still vulnerable


because they weren’t fully dormant yet, he noted.


Blueberries last year made a comeback from 2009, when prices were very low, so they’re now in a more viable price range for growers, he said. While a lot of


blueberry product goes into the fresh market until weather events harm quality, last year that fresh market stayed strong so less was diverted to the frozen side of the sector.


In fact, that was true


throughout North America, said Brar.


The lower prices did encourage consumers and industry users to purchase more blueberries, which helped to keep prices buoyant. This year, he expects a similar scenario for blueberries, although it’s all dependent on weather during harvest, he added. Brar is also a raspberry grower and his family grows blueberries.


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